Brait, the investment company controlled by Christo Wiese, says it
has reached an agreement with the debt holders in its troubled UK
retailer New Look to beef up the balance sheet.
Its share price fell as much as 14% to R27.31 after it
released
details of its plan to cut its shareholding in New Look to between 18%
and 30% by issuing shares to creditors.
The deal will see New Look’s bondholders reducing its long-term debt
from £1.35bn to £350m, raise £150m in new bonds and cut interest
payments from £80m to £40m.
This deal with its debtors followed Brait fully impairing
its holding in the retailer in September 2018. Depending on its debtors'
take-up of the new bonds, Brait will now only have an 18% to 30%
holding in New Look valued at between £27m (R482.5m) and £53m
(R947.11m).
Brait initially took a 90% holding in New Look for R14.55bn in 2015
when it bought it from private equity firms, Permira Holdings and Apax
Partners.
The deal also ensured that New Look, which is the UK’s second-largest
women’s fashion retailer, was no longer technically insolvent. Its
liabilities exceeded its assets by £560.6m.
Like many other retailers in the UK, New Look has had a difficult few
months. A struggling economy and concerns over the impact of Brexit
have dampened consumer sentiment. Revenue dropped 7.3% to £1.34bn and it
had incurred an earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and
amortisation (ebidta) loss of £10.7m for the 2018 financial year to
end-March.
New Look said:...
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